'MCA-21 is on real-time basis, ghost cos get ousted via KYC drive'

As the government sets out to counter views of its agency raising eligibility of MCA-21 data as one of the tools to arrive at GDP numbers, the Corporate Affairs Ministry has dismissed any bogus data within the database saying MCA-21 is on real time basis and if a company after entering the database is non-functional, it gets removed at the time of KYC drive.

"MCA 21 is on real time basis. Shell, bogus companies are being eradicated… If a company is incorporating, it will enter the list of MCA-21. And once the company becomes non-performing or non-functional, then in the first or second drive, it gets removed. The KYC of company is this only. Self updation is happening", an MCA source said, dismissing the concerns of NSSO.

The NSSO in a recent report said that 36 per cent of companies that were part of the MCA-21 database were either untraceable or were wrongly classified. The stirred a controversy over the authenticity of the new series of GDP numbers that takes corporate numbers using the MCA-21 database.

MCA sources said that know your customer or KYCs details have already been verified for about 5 lakh corporates featuring on the MCA- 21 list. They added that the system is working and the versatility of MCA-21 is among the best in the world.

A government statistical organisation NSSO had cast fresh doubts on India's economic growth figures when it brought about new facts about the corporate data. NSSO had carried a big survey of services companies in 2016-17 and had contacted 35,000 companies drawn from the list of registered enterprises that file accounts online with MCA's portal based initiative-MCA-21. NSSO had selected 35,456 companies from the 3.49 lakh firms of MCA-21

"Out of the 39 per cent out-of-survey units in MCA, 21 per cent were found to be out of coverage and another 12 per cent were non-traceable (which in number is nearly 4000 units)", the NSSO had said in its report.

In another reference, the report had said that out of total 63,420 service sector enterprises (excluding construction sector enterprises) selected for the survey, 42,262 enterprises (67 per cent of allocated sample) were found to be in operation at the time of canvassing of schedules of enquiry.

In all, NSSO had said 39 per cent of the companies included in a key database used to estimate India's economy activity and GDP growth were closed, untraceable. The NSSO found that 21 per cent of companies included in a database, contributing to GDP numbers, were "out of coverage" as they were no longer operating. Another 12 per cent could not be traced.

The NSSO, which is part of India's ministry of statistics, carries out household surveys to gather data from social economic indicators on health, education and also indirectly lets its survey results to be used for official GDP figures carried by its Central Statistical Organisation (CSO).

On Friday Finance Ministry came out in support of MCA-21 and said GDP overestimation due to MCA data a 'misconception' and added the chances of GDP numbers of the government may be over-estimated due to untraceable 'shell' companies in all likelihood is 'marginal'.

--IANS

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